Memoirs of a Moorings

Tending To My Own Grass

“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.”~Epicurus (Greek philosopher, BC 341-270)

I've come to realize something not so cute about myself. I've been struggling with the grass-is-greener syndrome. Not sure when exactly it started, but it's been within in the last few years and probably the last year that it's come to a head. I've realized that my conversation--both internally and externally--centers around who I think is better off, more spiritual, prettier, has better behaved kids or a better marriage. Yuck. I hate this about myself and I hated admitting it to myself.

A friend of mine who suffers from the same horrible syndrome told me to start looking at my own grass. And I realized it's pretty green. Sure there are some brown spots, a few spots that need sprucing up, but it's not as bad as I've made it out to be. And lately, the grass of others that I've been thinking is greener is not. The Lord always shows me exactly where it is not.

My problem really boils down to the fact that I need to get more in the Word and get more of the Word in me. I booked it to church Sunday and sure enough my pastor admonished us to grasp hold of the fact that "Godliness with contentment is great gain." I Timothy 6:6

And an even greater revelation--when we keep our eyes on Jesus, we don't have time to look around at other's grass. Our perspective is changed when we look towards heaven. With this thought I was reminded of the sweet lyrics of song called "Breathless" by a singer named Elina, wife of one of my favorite singers Tyrone Wells. (you can hear the song on her myspace page)

May we all learn to be content with what we have and to remember what God has given us.

 

"Breathless."

Days come and go
Waters ebb and flow
Life keeps changing
How quickly I forget
the wonder when we met
Your love amazed me.

Remind me again
Of Your beautiful Presence
The times You came close
Leaving me breathless
Remind me again
Of Your wonderful promise
that You will return
and leave me breathless

In moments of my life
I've seen Your Spirit shine
Painting beauty
But colors turn to grey
How soon the memory fade
And still I'm yearning.

Remind me again
Of Your beautiful Presence
The times You came close
Leaving me breathless
Remind me again
Of Your wonderful promise
that You will return
and leave me breathless

I'll be breathless
You leave me breathless, Lord.

Gurrlie Girl and Good Grooves

"Think of all the beauty still left around you and be happy." ~Anne Frank

Amazing how something as simple as some good music can make you forget about your bossy kid. I totally missed the last season of American Idol, so I knew nothing of Elliott Yamin who was like the third runner up. The other day I saw an ad on TV for his song "Wait For You" and I went straight to the computer to download the album. Let's just say I've been rocking the album non-stop for two days. He's making me very happy right now!

Also, I've been rocking some Gurrlie Girl jewelery that my sister bought for me from one of her co-workers. Absolutely adore the scriptural reminders of trusting God and the fruit of the spirit! And I'm such the nerd. I ordered an Acme Pen from See Jane Work. (Thanks Toni!) Writes like a dream :-) So I've been constantly writing "This too shall pass" as reminder that this crazy time with Rhyan is just a phase.

Sweet Little Strong Will

“If God had trouble handling children, what makes you think it would be a piece of cake for you?” ~Bill Cosby

This sweet little face has been driving me crazy the past two weeks. His transition into his new pre-K class started off smoothly. Lately, he's been pushing the limits and testing his boundaries way too much--crying, falling out, being defiant. So I went to the director of the school because she's dealt with way more three-year-olds than I have. She says that Rhyan is a strong-willed child who is merely seeing how much he can get away with. Strong-willed? I thought all three-year-olds were strong-willed. She says they aren't. So there's a reason why this kid has an opinion about everything and loves asserting himself.

The key she says is to learn how NOT to break his will, rather to guide it. No big deal she says. Better to have a strong-willed kid than not. Makes for a great leader. Sounds all good, but still his behavior is leaving me exasperated. Probably due to my fluctuating hormones and being tired more often than not--and the fact that I work on campus so they can buzz me anytime. Actually, it works out well because today he was shocked to see me walk into the classroom during one of his fits.

So if anyone has advice for dealing with strong-willed kids, bring it on. Yes, we believe in a spank, but not for every single thing. (Sorry Ma--my mom the spanker reads the blogs :-) I'm already looking into getting some books so I don't ruin this child :-) I've started praying with him more consistently at night and praying over him before school in the morning. How is he going to know how to pray if he doesn't see a model of it? Got this great advice recently from a John Piper podcast How Can Parents Help Their Children Memorize the Bible? So here's to strong-willed children and the parents who love them! Now is the time that I wish I was superwoman. I'd make all those visions that I had when Rhyan was a baby come true--the ones where he grew up into a totally obedient and compliant child.

The Girlfriend Gathering

"Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another, 'What! You too? I thought I was the only one” ~ C.S. Lewis

The girlfriend gathering held last Saturday was so much fun that I didn't think to pick up my camera until the party was pretty much over. The premise of the get together is simple: Good food and Good friends :-) Could a girl possibly ask for more? Without girlfriend time I always feel like I'm dying on the vine. This is the third year I've held it and we had an absolute blast--and everybody brought GREAT food. Fried chicken, macaroni and cheese (which was granished with tomatoes on top-so pretty! and delicious), yams, greens, spaghetti, and few dishes I know I"m forgetting.
For those who wanted that sinful banana pudding I made, it's P*aula De*en's recipe. Click to get the recipe Not Yo Momma's

Banana Pudding.

A co-worker came to speak about losing her husband four years ago to a motorcycle accident after only two years of marriage. Instead of it being a sad tale of love lost, she offered hope and reminded us that tomorrow is promised to no one. Love with all your might right now! When I first met her last year, I could hardly believe her joy given her situation. We are the same age, so I felt a kindred spirit in her. Yet, she is a testimony of how God heals and restores. I love that girl and thank her so much for sharing her testimony.

We still have left overs? And extra favors with little goodies inside. Any body wanna come over and take some off our hands?!

Who Needs Toys?

"A characteristic of the normal child is he doesn't act that way very often."  ~Author Unknown

This summer we bought new patio furniture for the backyard. In an effort to save it from the sun, we cover it with tarp during the weekday. However, SOMEONE finds it fun to turn the tarp-covered furniture into his own mosh pit. And his sidekick is always his stuffed bull dog.

Daddy's Shoes

"I've got big shoes to fill. This is my chance to do something. I have to seize the moment." ~ Andrew Jackson

After the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, I remember reading a story about a wife who lost her husband. In the article, she said his shoes were still where he left them by the door. Even months later, she didn't have the heart to move them. They gave her a sense of normalcy--so she said they would stay until she could move on from the grief.

The other week, as I stepped over yet another pair of my husband's shoes left out, I thought of this wife. Instead of getting irritated, I felt a wave of gratefulness wash over me. Praise God my husband is still here to fill those shoes. Lately, I've been appreciating those shoes left out--in the bathroom, by the garage door, in the den....Our little guy does too.

Stir Crazy Car Trip

"The car trip can draw the family together, as it was in the days before television when parents and children actually talked to each other." ~Andrew H. Malcolm This weekend, we headed to San Diego to attend my hubby's company picnic at Sea World. What should have been an hour and half drive turned into more than three hours in bumper-to-bumper traffic. Gotta love Southern California. I thought I was going to go CRAZY in that car! Rhyan slept for about 30 minutes and then was going stir crazy himself. After the DVD player battery died (the fuses for the lighters in my car died also-big, sad face), I had to get creative. Turns out I'd experimented with my mp3 player and downloaded two episodes of Wow, Wow, Wubbzy on it. Whew! We'd been talking about Sea World all week, so Rhyan was so ready! We went to the dolphin and Shamu shows which cut down on the walking for this pregnant mommy. Our little guy loved the dolphins! We partied like rock stars at Sea World and didn't get home until after midnight. At least the ride home was smooth sailing.

All Mario, All the Time

“One of the best lessons children learn through video games is standing still will get them killed quicker than anything else” ~Jinx Milea

Our little three-year-old still digs computer games, but he's found a new addiction. An old school (yes, the original!) Game Boy that my sister gave to him. The kid can't keep his hands off of it. And the only game he is interested in playing is Super Mario Bros. At first, he couldn't get past level 1, now the kid can get to level 4 by himself and remembers all the little tricks and secret spots that my sister showed him one time.

He wakes up asking for the Game Boy and even wants to sleep with him--which I won't allow because I know I'll he'll try to play that thing sitting next to the night light when he should be sleep. His addiction is actually not that bad because I use it as a tool. Oh, you don't want to eat? Okay, no Game Boy. Immediate compliance. Oh, you don't want to pick up your toys? Okay, no Game Boy. The toys are put away in no time flat.

Now here's to hoping that this more than 15 year old game doesn't peeter out on us! I better check EBay for a back up huh?

How Does the Baby Come Out?

"Where did you come from, baby dear?
Out of the Everywhere and into here."
~George MacDonald

I've hit the halfway mark in this pregnancy-and as the belly grows, so do Rhyan's questions. So I pulled out two books last week: What To Expect When Mommy's Having A Baby and What To Expect When the New Baby Comes Home. These two books have become his favorite bedtime stories. The books are geared toward his age group and answer the questions in an easy and understandable manner. But one question that's covered in the book that Rhyan can't seem to wrap his mind around is: How does the baby come out? (Thank God he's not even phased by the section of the book that explains: How did the baby get in there?)

The book explains that the baby travels down the birth canal--and well, you know the rest of the story. Even after I read it, he still looks at me and says, "How does the baby come out?" But his tone is more like, "How the heck is that kid gonna get out of there?" I think part of his confusion is due to the fact that he thinks Mommy is built like him with the same equipment. In fact, whenever he busts in on me in the bathroom, he tells me what equipment I have--even though I vehemently deny it. So if I was three years old, I'd be confused how a baby could come out of that same equipment.

My Name Is Not Rhyan

"Have regard for your name, since it will remain for you longer than a great store of gold." ~Ecclesiasticus, Aprocrypha (Ec. 41:12)

For the past week, Rhyan has been wearing us thin with the phrase, "My name is not Rhyan, it's Patrick." As in Patrick the starfish from Spongebob Squarepants. We went to a going away party for one of my husband's co-workers last weekend and one of the guests said to me, "So does Patrick go to school?" Turns out Rhyan had been chatting it up with two females guests and when asked his name, he told them it was Patrick. I had to let them know it was Rhyan.

Then in his pre-K class this week, he told the new assistant teacher to call him Patrick. When I picked him up yesterday, she asked, "Is his middle name Patrick?" I replied, "No, that's his chosen name for the week." Then she told me, he re-named one of the girls in class Sandy, the squirrel from Spongebob. (Sidenote: he's taken to calling me Sandy as well.) And the little girl made it very clear that she was NOT happy about being given a new name.

So I had to explain to Rhyan that he can't change the kid's names if they don't want them changed. And I told him he can be Patrick at home, but he's Rhyan at school. We'll see how it turned out today.

Last week, he was Gidget, the super-robot that Widget built from Wow! Wow! Wubbzy! We'll have to wait and see who he transforms himself into next week. I'm getting lots of giggles from this.